"Bit by bit they are making over the world"

The Poem
Gradualism - Kenneth Rexroth

We slept naked
On top of the covers and woke
In the chilly dawn and crept
Between the warm sheets and made love
In the morning you said
"It snowed last night on the mountain"
High up on the blue-black diorite
Faint orange streaks of snow
In the ruddy dawn
I said
"It has been snowing for months
All over Canada and Alaska
And Minnesota and Michigan
Right now wet snow is falling
In the morning streets of Chicago
Bit by bit they are making over the world
Even in Mexico even for us"

The Beverage
A Really Good Hot Toddy

It is snowing here today, the first real snowfall. I am running out the door on errands and to a movie soon. Blustery and slick and cold.

I already know what I will be drinking tonight, snuggled into my bed with cross-stitch, Frasier, and this. Being in the midst of hand-making holiday gifts means that I have a good excuse to spend a lot of time under cover during the weekends.

This is my current hot toddy jam.

Ingredients:

Cinnamon Apricot Tea

Honey

Lemon

Whiskey (currently: Bulleit Rye. Branching out from Bulleit Bourbon!)

I’ve been using a non-caffeinated herbal tea, so I can drink it at night without getting myself all nervous about whether or not I will be able to sleep, which then prevents me from being able to sleep because I have psyched myself into not being able to sleep.

I brew the tea fairly strongly. I also pour the drink fairly strongly. After the tea brews, a stir of honey and a squeeze of lemon is all it takes. It’s basically the easiest drink ever, and the satisfaction quotient is very high. And the drink itself is fortifying and comforting.

Comfort watching television is also recommended as a pairing.